Work:
All throughout the book the prisoners are responsible for mainly just one thing, getting their work done. In section two it starts out with Ivan thinking about his wife explaining the profession of carpet painters. All one would have to do in this job was to put the stencil on and paint through the holes. (p.34) This was a work option for Ivan to do after he left the camp. While in the camp much work was to be done. In this section Ivan and the the other prisoners of the 104th were to lay cement blocks on second-story walls. In order to do this Ivan had to move blocks while others moved the sand. The prisoners wanted to work quickly to keep out the cold and stay warm. Compared to other places Ivan stayed he had said this camp was much easier. ""...I think we have a quieter life here," he said with his lisp. "Here, when the shift's over, we go back to the camp whether our job's done or not. That's a law. And bread-- three ounces more, at least, than up there. Here a man can live..." (p.56).
Authority:
Within the prison camps there were different ranks of people in charge of the camps. "A second gate guard-- a checker-- stood at the next rail in silence verifying the count. And, in addition, a lieutenant stood watching... And on the other side of the wire the assistant head guard verified the count. And anouther lieutenant stood by and watched." (p.30). In order for the prison camps to keep control they needed to have all of these positions to watch over everyone. Being in a higher position the person had more benefits such as having more food and warmer clothes. Some of these higher positions were not very good though either such as the guards who had to stay outside with the prisoners. "The guards weren't allowed to tie cloth over their faces. Theirs was not much of a job either." (p.32).
Survival:
The most important part of each day of Ivan and the others is to survive. The prisoners do not get very much food and savory every little piece they get. They look forward to eating each day nothing else because the only other thing for them to do in the camp is work. Ivan and the other prisoners constantly tried to keep warm so they would not freeze. In this section Ivan wanted to work quickly so he could finish and not have to stay outside in the cold. In one part of this section it states, "So now they had a right to sit by th stove. Anyway they couldn't start laying the blocks before dinner and there was no point in carrying the mortar up there-- it would freeze." (p.53). As one could with this statement here the prisoners only thought of the cold and food because those were the two main things that would keep them alive.
Work:
All throughout the book the prisoners are responsible for mainly just one thing, getting their work done. In section two it starts out with Ivan thinking about his wife explaining the profession of carpet painters. All one would have to do in this job was to put the stencil on and paint through the holes. (p.34) This was a work option for Ivan to do after he left the camp. While in the camp much work was to be done. In this section Ivan and the the other prisoners of the 104th were to lay cement blocks on second-story walls. In order to do this Ivan had to move blocks while others moved the sand. The prisoners wanted to work quickly to keep out the cold and stay warm. Compared to other places Ivan stayed he had said this camp was much easier. ""...I think we have a quieter life here," he said with his lisp. "Here, when the shift's over, we go back to the camp whether our job's done or not. That's a law. And bread-- three ounces more, at least, than up there. Here a man can live..." (p.56).
Authority:
Within the prison camps there were different ranks of people in charge of the camps. "A second gate guard-- a checker-- stood at the next rail in silence verifying the count. And, in addition, a lieutenant stood watching... And on the other side of the wire the assistant head guard verified the count. And anouther lieutenant stood by and watched." (p.30). In order for the prison camps to keep control they needed to have all of these positions to watch over everyone. Being in a higher position the person had more benefits such as having more food and warmer clothes. Some of these higher positions were not very good though either such as the guards who had to stay outside with the prisoners. "The guards weren't allowed to tie cloth over their faces. Theirs was not much of a job either." (p.32).
Survival:
The most important part of each day of Ivan and the others is to survive. The prisoners do not get very much food and savory every little piece they get. They look forward to eating each day nothing else because the only other thing for them to do in the camp is work. Ivan and the other prisoners constantly tried to keep warm so they would not freeze. In this section Ivan wanted to work quickly so he could finish and not have to stay outside in the cold. In one part of this section it states, "So now they had a right to sit by th stove. Anyway they couldn't start laying the blocks before dinner and there was no point in carrying the mortar up there-- it would freeze." (p.53). As one could with this statement here the prisoners only thought of the cold and food because those were the two main things that would keep them alive.